In his opening remarks to the committee, Dr. Anthony Fauci, formerly the federal government’s top infectious disease expert, laid out his case against Senator Rand Paul directly to his face: he accused the senator of fixating on getting him prosecuted, making repeated defamatory remarks about him, and leaking his private diary to the public.
Fauci said that during his nearly 40 years as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, he testified before or briefed congressional committees well over 200 times. He cited that record as evidence of his history of cooperating with legitimate congressional oversight, even as he invoked the Fifth Amendment at this particular hearing.
“Mr. Chairman, Ranking Member Peters, members of the committee, I served at the NIH for over 54 years, 38 of those as director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases,” he said. “Over that period, I proved that I believe in and respect the value of legitimate congressional oversight. In fact, I testified before and/or briefed Senate and House committees well over 200 times over those 38 years.”
“During and after the COVID pandemic, I have appeared multiple times for hearings in the Senate and the House, usually under oath, and sat for several days-long transcribed sworn interviews answering questions about the very issues that are now the subject of this hearing,” he continued.